The New York Jets are on the cusp of opening training camp in Cortland, New York and there are several questions that are surrounding this team. Will Mark Sanchez or Geno Smith be the Jets starting quarterback on opening day? But the most pressing question is whether or not that Jets head coach Rex Ryan will do enough to retain his job?
Ryan came onto the scene in 2009 as the brash head coach that didn’t come to the Jets to kiss New England Patriots head coach Bill Belichick’s rings. Ryan followed this bold statement by leading the Jets to the AFC Championship Game in his first two seasons. The past few seasons have been pedestrian like for the Jets as they have combined to go 14-18. Ryan has never met a camera that he didn’t like and it is tough to talk in New York City when you don’t have the victories to back it up.
In 2011, Ryan sat by and watched the New York Giants win another Super Bowl after proclaiming that the Jets had been the better team since he arrived. There was also the whole debacle last season with former Jets quarterback Tim Tebow. The Jets acquired Tebow from the Denver Broncos and mainly used him as the “personal protector” on punt coverage. When last season had become a wash, Ryan refused to appoint Tebow as the starting quarterback while Sanchez struggled. Tebow was ultimately released without being given the opportunity to properly prove his worth with the Jets. The Tebow disaster was blamed on former Jets general manager Mike Tannenbaum, but we know that Jets owner Woody Johnson is all about stealing the back pages of the New York tabloids and Ryan had no problem agreeing to it.
Now with a new general manager in John Idzik running the show for the Jets, Ryan has a short leash to work with. The Jets made the playoffs in Ryan’s first two season’s at the helm, but the team gave up numerous draft picks to get there in order to acquire players such as Sanchez, wide receiver Santonio Holmes, and cornerback Antonio Cromartie. Combine that with below average drafting by the Jets and you have a coach that enters the 2013 National Football League season on the hot seat.
Ryan attached his wagon to Sanchez and the quarterback has regressed in every season with the Jets which is illustrated by Sanchez throwing at least 18 interceptions in three of his four seasons. An upset Sanchez received a contract extension after the Jets traded for Tebow and the extra money in his wallet held him back from performing.
Ryan has made his name as one of the top defensive minds in the NFL, but you need to score points in order to succeed in professional football. The Jets were 30th in total offense last season and if those numbers do not improve it will be another long season for the Jets. People are saying that the Patriots could be vulnerable in the AFC East, but the Miami Dolphins and Buffalo Bills have each gotten better while Ryan and the Jets are stuck in mud. Ryan can talk a good game and now it is time for him to convince the Jets that they can win in 2013.
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